章節 45: Who is Batman?
Abner looked at Bruce with a troubled expression but said nothing. The room was filled only with the sound of the leader's voice. He grabbed the scientist by the shoulder and introduced him to both Bruce and the camera, saying:
"This is a member of Wayne Enterprises' R&D department. He can confirm the origin of Batman's gear. So, Bruce Wayne, what do you have to say now?"
The leader laughed triumphantly, noticing Bruce's silence. He sneered, "Hmph. Since Batman ruined my business and threw me in jail, I'll expose his identity to the public. Let's see how smug he is then."
As he spoke, the leader's gaze fell back on Bruce, a thought seemingly occurring to him as he continued, "I remember once when he fought my men, he was stabbed. A wound like that would definitely leave a scar."
Standing nearby, Dick immediately understood the implication of the leader's words, and his face visibly shifted to shock.
Bruce's feelings became complicated.
He remembered that incident—the scar was indeed originally on his right arm, but later…
Meanwhile, after pinpointing Bruce and Dick's exact location, Avery had donned the batsuit and was moving swiftly through the unseen parts of the city.
Swoosh—
A faint whooshing sound accompanied his figure as he darted between the buildings in the twilight. On a nearby balcony, a woman was about to take down the clothes she had left drying all day when she felt a gust of wind as a dark figure rushed past her.
The wind made her shut her eyes involuntarily, but when she opened them again, there was nothing in front of her. Looking around, she saw no sign of anyone and dismissed it, muttering to herself before returning to her apartment.
There were five minutes left until Avery would reach his destination.
Back in the factory, the leader continued, "Why is it that Bruce Wayne returned to Gotham at the same time Batman made his appearance? Isn't that just a bit too much of a coincidence?"
That's true! Some people sitting at home in front of their TVs thought. We hadn't even realized that before!
So could Batman's real identity actually be...
Far away, in the GCPD, Commissioner Gordon was watching the broadcast. His hand trembled, almost dropping his cigarette onto his pants, which would've burned a hole the size of a bowl.
A nearby officer, understanding Gordon's reaction, patted him on the shoulder and handed him a cup of coffee. Gordon, without taking his eyes off the screen, reached out to take the cup, almost forgetting to say thanks. He took a sip, nearly sending the coffee straight up his nose.
Meanwhile, in Hawaii, Alfred's expression turned slightly serious as he watched the events unfold.
A woman in a blue bikini briefly walked past the camera, making the screen blur before the scene shifted to the Drake household next to Wayne Manor.
Tim was home with the house staff, his parents still at work. He sat on the couch, eyes wide, intently watching the events unfold on the screen.
Back at the dilapidated factory, the leader, still speaking, reached out to start pulling at Bruce's clothes, determined to prove his theory.
Wait a minute. Why am I about to let a man strip me?
Batman was filled with disapproval at the thought, but tied to his role, he didn't resist. Besides, this guy had gone so far, broadcasting live to all of Gotham—it wasn't a bad opportunity for Bruce to prove his innocence as well.
So he took a deep breath, didn't try to escape the ropes, and was even prepared to calmly say something along the lines of not being afraid of any inspection.
With Dick's loud shout of "Wait!" the results became immediately clear.
There were no scars on Bruce Wayne's right arm.
Dick closed his mouth.
Gordon's hands stopped trembling, and he calmly began organizing his officers to track down the criminals.
The people of Gotham collectively thought this man was probably an idiot. Bruce Wayne, a perfectly fine billionaire, would never choose to be Batman! For a moment, they had actually believed the nonsense.
Even the leader seemed bewildered. Though his statements had been speculative, they were based on reasonable logic.
First, given Batman's intimate knowledge of Gotham, he definitely had to be a Gothamite.
Secondly, the kind of top-tier materials Batman uses are not something an ordinary person could afford. Bruce Wayne is a billionaire, Batman's gear comes from Wayne Tech, and with his tragic past—losing his parents as a child—it would be somewhat plausible for him to have taken the path of becoming Batman.
—But only if Bruce were actually Batman.
"No way!"
The leader yanked at Bruce's shoulders, inspecting him from side to side, but no matter how hard he looked, there was no scar. Even if he had undergone scar removal surgery, a wound like that wouldn't have healed without leaving any trace. So...
The only possibility left was that Bruce Wayne truly wasn't Batman.
The leader didn't care about the mockery that the people watching the broadcast might direct at him. He had lost everything and was now a wanted criminal, all thanks to Batman. There was no way he would pass up today's opportunity.
Even if Bruce Wayne wasn't Batman, there was definitely a connection between the two. Otherwise, how could one explain why Batman's equipment all came from Wayne Tech?
With that in mind, the leader fixed his grim gaze on Bruce Wayne.
"Even if you're not Batman, he's definitely connected to you. Now tell me! Who is he?"
Bruce repeatedly denied it: "I've already told you, I don't know him."
"Still lying!"
The leader with hi bloodshot eyes, pointed an accusing finger, looking ready to strike Bruce.
Bruce chose to remain silent this time, his expression full of innocent frustration, as if thinking, Why am I dealing with a madman today?
Dick, completely ignored the whole time, glanced over with a look of sympathy.
Meanwhile, Gotham citizens watching at home felt a wave of pity for their city's wealthiest man. After all, how can you reason with a lunatic?
Gordon was still en route, watching the live broadcast in his car. As he sympathized with Bruce, he also calculated how long it would take Batman to arrive.
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